NEW YORK CITY — The fandom of "The Fault in Our Stars" is out in force today in Manhattan, where the film adaptation of John Green's novel premieres four days before its official release.

The Indianapolis author and the movie's cast were to arrive at the Ziegfeld Theater around 6 p.m., but fans gathered early this morning in hopes of catching a glimpse of the celebrities.

Seventeen-year-old Jessie Sporn beat every fellow Nerdfighter — the nickname of anyone who supports the pro-intelligence and good-deeds agenda of Green and his environmentalist musician brother, Hank Green — by arriving at 7 a.m. Sunday morning.

"Security wasn't even here yet," Sporn said while holding a sign that touted her "30+" hours of waiting. "I want to have the chance to see the people who brought this movie to life up close. Including not just the actors, but John Green. None of this would be here without him."

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The Hollywood trappings for this East Coast event (here rather than Los Angeles because lead actors Shailene Woodley and Ansel Elgort are working on the second film of the "Divergent" trilogy in Atlanta) include not a red carpet but an azure walkway to match the blue hue seen on the cover of the book that's sold more than 7 million copies.

A representative for 20th Century Fox gathered waiting fans for a video shout-out this morning, and he learned how popular Green is.

Fans suggested they say "DFTBA" — shorthand for Nerdfighters slogan "Don't forget to be awesome" — for the camera. The man with the camera replied, "We need to mention the movie."

When promoting the film, Fox uses the term "Fault Fanatics" for the fan base. But Nerdfighters have been around for years.

Two sisters from Chicago, 23-year-old Margaux Henquinet and 20-year-old Kelsey Henquinet, spent part of today's wait reminiscing about how they discovered the Green brothers: "Accio Deathly Hallows," a Harry Potter-inspired song that Hank posted to YouTube on July 18, 2007.

Known as the "Vlogbrothers," the Greens have traded video messages with each other at least once a week for seven years. More than 2 million people subscribe to their YouTube channel.

The Henquinet sisters took a box of Peeps confections to John in 2008, a nod to an old stunt from when the "Vlogbrothers" project was known as "Brotherhood 2.0."

"He still was doing events in very small bookshops," Margaux Henquinet said.

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During the past three days in New York, Green has been a high-profile guest at BookCon at the Javits Center, at a "Meet the Filmmakers" event at the SoHo Apple Store, and on NBC's "Today" in Rockefeller Plaza.

"Hank actually said in one of his videos to John right after the book came out, 'This book is going to change your life,' " Henquinet said. "He knew. And we know it's a great book. It's amazing to see all this happen."

The movie, the story of teenage cancer patients who meet in an Indianapolis support group, opens in theaters on Friday. Made on a modest budget of $12 million, "The Fault in Our Stars" shares its first weekend with the arrival of "Edge of Tomorrow" — a $178 million sci-fi epic starring Tom Cruise.

But experts are warming to the underdog. Entertainment site BoxOffice.com predicts a $36 million opening weekend for "Fault," and $28 million for "Edge." The BoxOfficeMojo.com site predicts $120 million in total U.S. ticket sales for "Fault," compared to $90 million for "Edge."

Henquinet said she wouldn't be surprised.

"We have Nerdfighters. We have book fans. We have movie fans," Henquinet said. "It's been snowballing, and it's beautiful."

Green's active and accessible online lifestyle differentiates him from Stephen King and John Grisham, "Twilight" author Stephenie Meyer and "The Hunger Games" author Suzanne Collins. And even "Harry Potter" creator J.K. Rowling.

"The way he is in his videos, it's like, 'Oh, he's a normal person,' " said Somya Srivastava, one of four 18-year-olds from Long Island who could have spent "senior skip day" at the beach. But they chose to camp out at the "The Fault in Our Stars" premiere.

"It's the whole persona, not just the books," Laura Broffman said of Green.

"But the books are part of him, because he created them," Aubri Juhasz interjected. "I read the books first and then was like, 'I want to know more about John Green, now.' "

The fourth of these friends, Nina Policano, wore a Magritte-inspired "This is not a pipe" T-shirt, paying tribute to "Fault" character Hazel Lancaster's tribute to Anna, a character in Green's imagined novel, "An Imperial Affliction."

None of the all-day campers have a ticket to tonight's 7:30 screening, but Policano is looking for a Nerdfighter miracle.

"It's the hope of maybe getting into the premiere, and meeting my idols," she said.

Call Star reporter David Lindquist at (317) 444-6404. Follow him on Twitter: @317Lindquist.